Attachment for multiple printing



June 16, 1936. H. M. RANTIN 2,044,124

' ATTACHMENT FOR MULTIPLE PRINTING Filed Jan. 22, 1935 -/Ej l 27 f o 1 7 X7 AZ g I f D Z3 B y 5' I I Patented June 16, 1936 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE 2 Claims.

Generically this invention relates to automatic feeders for printing presses but it is more particularly directed to the auxiliary cooperating means attachable to such a device and to the press, whereby two separate pieces of paper, envelopes, cards and the like may be expeditiously and simultaneously printed.

One of the principal objects of this invention is the provision of means attachable to automatic feeder devices originally designed to successively deliver blank sheets from a single stack of blanks to a printing press, enabling said device to simultaneously deliver two separate blanks to the printing press.

Another important object of this invention is the provision of means attachable. to an automatic feeder and press without material change to existing structures comprising a detachable separator element adapted to separate two stacks of blanks and detachable and adjustable fingers engaging said stacks, so that the blanks from the respective stacks may be simultaneously fed to the printing mechanism and removed from said mechanism.

With these and other objects in view, which will become apparentas the description proceeds, the invention resides in the construction, combination and arrangement of parts, hereinafter more fully described and claimed, andillustrated in the accompanying drawing, in which like characters of reference indicate like parts throughout the several figures, of which:

Fig. 1 is a fragmentary perspective view of an automatic feeder and printing press unit showing my improved stack separator and gripper fingers operatively positioned.

Fig. 2 is a cross sectional feeder mechanism.

Fig. 3 is a detail view of the sheet holding fingers.

Fig. 4 is a detail view of one of the stack engaging fingers.

Briefly, it was applicant's purpose to provide a separator assembly expeditiously applicable to a Kluge automatic feeder and press so that blanks from two stacks instead of one could be simultaneously fed to the printing mechanism, so designed as not to interfere with the operation of existing structures and installable without material change to such structures, and which he accomplished by the cooperating stack engageable finger mechanisms and separator element forming the subject matter of this invention.

In the illustrated embodiment characterizing this invention there is shown a feeder and printview through the ing unit A comprising an automatic feeder mechanism B and'printing mechanism C.

The automatic feeder mechanism comprises the magazine supporting bracket I and supporting post 2 on which is suitably mounted the 5 magazine base plate 3 formed with a ribbed or slotted face 4, and mounted on said plate is a pair of elevator slide members 5 formed at one of their ends with upwardly projecting portions 6 and with feet portions 1 secured by screws or in any suitable manner and formed on their respective inner faces with longitudinal slots 8 adapted to slidably receive the respective end portions of elevator shaft 9 on which is mounted by lugs I0 and set screws II the elevator or elevator advancing plate l2. Journalled in the lower ends of upwardly projectingportions 6 is the elevator ratchet shaft l3 which is suitably operated by a gear mechanism mounted in gear cover I4 and which gear and pawl mechanism, not shown, also effects movement of elevator adjusting arm shaft l5 and elevator adjusting arm l6 suitably mounted thereon which normally regulates the travel of the stock to the feeding arm suckers I1 when the stock is in a single stack.

In'order that respective sheets may be simultaneously fed from two separate stacks of blanks '|8--I8, a slot I9 is formed in the lower edge of elevator advancing plate l2 through which is adapted to extend separator or divider element 20, said element being formed at one end with a substantially U-shaped member 2| adapted to engage over the edge of base plate 3 and carrying a set screw 22 adapted to clampingly secure said member to the plate, the free end of. said member 20 terminating in reduced portion 23. It will be observed that the separator .20 divides the base plate 3 so as to form two separate stack spaces.

' Mounted on said elevator adjusting arm shaft 40 I5 intermediate arm 16 and each end of the shaft is a stack engaging finger 24 curved at one end to fit over tubular or bearing element 25 secured by screw 26 or in any suitable manner and a thumb screw 21 is adapted to extend through said bearing and engage said shaft l5 to secure the finger in any desired adjusted position with respect to stack l8,the free end 28 of said finger being bent to extend at an angle and when operatively positioned is adapted to extend in parallelism with elevator advancing plate l2 so as to engage the uppermost sheet or face of stack H3 in place of arm Hi.

In conclusion it might be well to state that the adjustable fingers 24 are designed to prevent interference with the feeding arm suckers l I when feeding small stock from two stacks.

The printing press mechanism will now be described, which comprises frame 29 and gear guard element 30 and to which is suitably secured bracket I and supporting post 2, respectively, and suitably mounted on said frame is bed plate 3|. The sheet holder on finger 32 is attached to bracket 33 suitably associated with the lift cam on the press main shaft, the operation of which mechanism (not shown) causes finger 32 to position each sheet as it is deposited on said bed by the vacuum feed mechanism [1.

extension 34' is secured by screw 33' to bracket 33, in place of finger 32, and carries a pair of fingers 35 each adapted to engage a separate sheet as it is fed from the respective stacks l8 so that two sheets may be simultaneouslyprinted instead of one as heretofore prevalentl Said bar 34 is formed with a plurality of threaded apertures 36 adapted to adjustably secure the fingers and clamp in position on base plate 3, mount fingers 24 on shaft l5, either removing elevator adjusting arm IE or not as desired, adjust said fingers 24 in accordance with feeding requirements, and substitute bar 34, whereupon said feeder and press unitis adapted tofeed simultaneously separate sheets from stacks l8-|8 to bed plate 3| to be simultaneously printed, the

operation of said feeder and press mechanisms being similar to their operation when printing from one stack.

No means with which I am familiar has heretofore been employed to enable feeding and printing two separate sheets without material and expensive change to existing structures. It Will be observed from the above description that I have designed means attachable to an automatic feeder and press unit comprising few parts, easily installable without material change to the existing structure, manufacturable at a negligible cost, and efficient for the purposes intended.

Although in practice I have found that the form of my invention illustrated in the accompanyingdrawing and referred to in the above description as the preferred embodiment is the most efficient and practical, yet realizing that conditions concurrent; with the adoption of my invention will necessarily vary, I desire to empha- However, inthe, present instance a bar 34 formed withapertured size that various minor changes in details of construction, proportion and arrangement of parts, may be resorted to within the scope of the appended claims without departing from or sacrificing any of the principles of this invention.

While I have preferably referred to one separator and a pair of stack engaging elevator adjusting fingers, it is to be understood that more than one separator may be employed and the number of fingers varied according to the exigencies of particular operating requirements, without departing from the spirit or scope of this invention.

Having thus described my invention, what I desire protected by Letters Patent is as set forth inthe following claims:

1. The combination with a Kluge printing press'feeder having a base plate, slide members carried by the plate and formed with upwardly projecting portions connected by an elevator arm shaft, an elevator plate movable over the base plate, and an elevator adjusting arm engageable with a stack of stock, of a divider plate mounted centrally of the base plate and secured thereto,

said elevator plate being formed with a slot through which extends said divider, a stack engaging finger adjustably mounted on said elevator arm shaft on opposite sides of the elevator adjusting arm, and adapted to engage a respective stack of stock, whereby sheets may be fed simultaneously from stacks separated by said divider. 2. The combination with a Kluge printing press feeder having a base plate, slide members carried by the plate and formed with upwardly projecting portions connected by an elevator arm shaft, an elevator plate movable over the base plate, an elevator adjusting arm engageable with a stack of stock, and feeding arm sheet engaging suckers, of a divider plate formed atone end with a substantially U-shaped member adapted to engage over the edge of the base plate and having means for clampingly securing said member to the base plate substantially central of its length to form two stack spaces, said elevator plate having a slot formed in its lower edge to receive the divider. with respect to which it is longitudinally movable, a stack engaging finger formed at one end with a bearing adapted to be mounted on said elevator arm shaft on opposite sides of the elevator adjusting arm, and with its free end bent to extend at an angle, means carried by said bearing for adjustably securing the finger on said shaft with its free end in parallelism with the elevator plate and in engagement with a stack of stock in a respective space, whereby sheets from a plurality of stacks may be simultaneously fed without interference with said feeding arm suckers.

HORACE M. RANTIN. 

